Bicycle



Paten ted lune I3, I899. F. P. BEMIS.

BICYCLE.

(Application filed Feb. 13, 1897.)

(No Model.)

UNITED STATES PATENT Fries.

FREDERICK POMEROY BEMIS, OF DAVENPORT, IO\VA.

BICYCLE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No, 626,852, dated June 13,1899.

Original application filed August 25, 1896, Serial No. 603.909.

Divided and this application filed February 13,1897. Serial No.

623,208- (No model.)

To all ZU7'L0777/ it may concern:

Be it known that I, FREDERICK POMEROY BEMIS, a citizen of the UnitedStates, residing at Davenport, in the county of Scott and State of Iowa,have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Bicycles; and I dohereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exactdescriptionof the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to whichit appertains to make and use the same.

My invention has for its object to provide new and novel constructionsof several parts of a bicycle, and for this purpose it relates to theconstruction of the front forks and the connection thereof with thereach of the bicycle, to means for propelling the bicycle, and to abody-support for the rider, all being adapted to be embodied in a singlemachine, as will be herein described, although it will be obvious thateach feature is capable of use with other forms of the several features.

To carry out the objects above set forth, I have inventedtheconstruction, arrangement, and combination of the several partshereinafter more fully described and claimed, this application being adivision of another application filed by me in the United States PatentOfficeon the 25th day of August, 1896, and serially numbered 603,909.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, in which corresponding parts aredesignated by corresponding marks of reference, Figure 1 is a frontelevation of a bicycle constructed in accordance with this invention,showing the construction of the front forks. Fig. 2 is a side elevationthereof, showing also the form of driving mechanism and body-supportclaimed herein. Fig. 3 is a sectional view taken immediately above theupper bridgeplate ofFigs. 1 and 2. Figs. 4 and 5 are fragmental sectionson lines a; a; and y 3 respectively, of Fig. 3. Fig. 6 is a plan view ofthe body-support.

The front fork consists of two uprights of any suitable material, oneupon each side of the front wheel A, the uprights being straight, ifdesired, although in the accompanying drawings I have shown them asbeing slightly curved and canted rearwardly, the uprights extendingupwardly above the periphery of the wheel A, which is carried in thelower ends thereof in suitable bearings, the axle of the wheel unitingthe said lower ends. The -uprights are connected above the wheel by anupper and a lower bridge-plate 2 and 3, respectively, between which thespindle 4 in the front tube 5 of the frame is carried, thusconnectingthe fork and the frame. The front tube 5 supports the forwardend of the reach, which in the accompanying drawings is shown asconsisting of the upper tube B and the lower tube G.

- The two bridge'plates are similar in construction, so that thefollowing description of plate 3 should be understood as likewiseapplying to the plate 2. The plate, which maybe a parallelogram, is bypreference of the shape shown in Fig. 3, as the weight thereof is thusreduced, and has a central slot 6 therein in the same plane as that inwhich the wheel A revolves, the edges of the slot having serrations 6thereon. Near the ends of the plate, at an equal distance upon each sideof the slot 6, circular apertures 7 are formed, the sides of theapertures being also serrated, and through these apertures the uprights1 pass.

in the front of each of the apertures and of the slot, and to these earslacings or crossbracings 8 are secured, the lacings or crossbracingspassing over and around or being also secured to projections 8 upon theuprights, tying them together, and, as shown, I prefer to commence thelacings below the lower bridge-plate, the lower bracings or lacings 8crossing each other at the medial line of thelower bridge-plate. Thelacings may consist of wire rods, if desired, provided withtightening-nuts S.

Each upright has mounted thereon two eccentric collars 9, each collarhaving a serrated outer periphery and being surrounded by an eccentricwasher 10, having serrated inner and outer edges, with the former ofwhich the serrated edge of the collar 9 engages, while the serrations onthe outer edge of the collar engage the serrations upon the inner edgeof .the aperture 7, in which it may be placed. It will be thus seen thatby varying the relative positions of the eccentric collars and washerswithin the corresponding apertures the plates may be moved inrelation'to the uprights, the parts being held in any given position bycoverplates 11, interposed between them and the nuts 11 upon theuprights, which are threaded to receive the nuts. When the uprights areof wood, I may, if I so desire and as shown in the drawings, inclosethose parts thereof thata're between the bridge-plates and slightlyabove and below them in a metallic tube 11", threaded to receive thenuts.

The bodyofthespindledis contained within the front tube'5 of the frame,its ends projecting beyond the top and bottom thereof and beingthreaded, the ends of the tube having a groove therein to provide arunway for the balls 12. Upon the lower end of the spindle a head 13 ismounted, the spindle passing therethrough, the head having on its upperface and surrounding the spindle an annular groove, which, with thecorresponding groove upon the lower end of the tube, forms ballbearings.An elongated boss 13 is formed upon the lower face of the head aroundthe spindle and is adapted to be contained within the slot 6 of thelower plate, the elongated sides of the boss being flattened andserrated, whereby it may be firmly held within the said slot in anydesired position, it being secured therein bya nut and Washer 4, screwedon the threaded end of the spindle. This construction at the lower endof the spindle is-duplicated at the upper end thereof, the headg13 atthe latter point being of course inverted, and such constructiontherefore needs no further description to permit it to be fullyunderstood. From the foregoing it will be seen that by varying theposition of the ends of the spindle within the slots 6 in thebridge-plates the lead of the fork in front of the spindle-2'. e., thedistance between the plane of the uprights and the axis of thespindle-may bevaried or absolutely reversed, or that the angle formed bythe fork and spindle may be varied, or both, as may be desired, and thismay be done either by the adjustment of the spindlein the slots 6alone,or by the adjustment of the uprights Within the apertures '7, orby the conjoint action of the two, and this latter permits a wide rangeof adjustment.

The uprights are continued upwardly by means of tubes 14, mounted uponthe upper ends of the uprights and suitably clamped thereon at anydesired elevation, the upper ends of the tubes being connected by acrossbar 14, to which each tube is secured by a clamping-collarM,encircling the bar, whereby the spread of the uprights when altered maybe provided for.

Upon each upright I may, if I so desire, mount a sleeve 15, open at bothends and capable of moving upon the tube which it encircles and to beclamped thereon by the clamp 15, each sleeve having. a handle 15, bywhich the bicycle may be steered; but such handles. are not essential,as when a bodysupport is connected to the fork, as will be presentlydescribed, the guiding may be effected by the inclination of the body ofthe rider.

As a means forpropelling a bicycle either by itself or as auxiliary toany approved form of foot-power I may use a belt 16, passing over apulley and reciprocated thereon, the belt being tightened and loosenedas it is reciprocated, as is claimed in my said application seriallynumbered 603,909; but the specific construction which I show and claimin this application for effecting such a desired movement of the belt isas follows:

Upon each end of the hub of the front wheel A is secured apulley 17,while upon the crossbar in of the fork and between the uprights thereofis mounted on each side of the plane of the wheel a pulley 18,the twopulleys 18 being separated-sufficiently to permit the most advantageousapplication of the power hereinafter specified. By preference the bar 11is bent, as shown in Fig. 1, whereby the plane of each of theidler-pulleys 1S intersects the corresponding pulley 17 upon thewheel-hub. A belt 10' passes over the pulleys 17 and 18 upon each sideof the bicycle, the belt being cut in its rear strand and having theoppositely-disposed ends formed thereby connected with a lever 19, thedowncoming end 16 of the belt being connected to the forward end of thelever, while the upcoming end 16 is connected to the lever in the rearthereof, the rear end of the lever being provided with a handle. Thelevers upon the opposite sides of the bicycle are connected by a strand20, passing over a transverse pulley 21, mounted upon the cross-banM,the strand being connected to each lever adjacent to the point ofattachment of the upcoming end of the belt or slightly in the rearthereof. From this constrnction it follows that as the rider draws eachlever up in the reciprocation ofthe belt he simultaneously tilts thelever, raising the rear end thereof, and tightens the belt, causing itto bind upon the driving-pulley 17 and to propel or assist in propellingthe bicycle, while upon depressing the lever the belt is loosened and iscarried over the driving-pulley without stopping the motion thereof. Thestrand 20 causes the levers to work in opposite directions and causesthe down ward push exerted upon the downwardly-moving lever (which wouldotherwise be lost so far as it relates to the propulsion of the bicycle)to assist in raising the opposite and upcoming leve-r. It is also ofcourse obvious that hoods may be placed over the pulleys 1'7 and 18 tohold the belts 16 thereon, as is described in my said other applicationserially numbered 603,909, and that the lever-checks and leverholdersand antifriction-rollers for the pulleys 17 described therein may beused in con- ;nection with this embodiment of my invention.

In connection with the manual power de scribed it is proper andconvenient to provide means for steering the bicycle other than thehandles hereinbefore described for that purpose and also to providemeans for supporting the chest of the rider to afford a bearing uponwhich he may rest when pulling upwardly upon the handles of the manualpower, and for the purposes of this in my present application Iconstruct such a support as follows:

The saddlepost 22 is mounted in the main upright D and has adj ustablyclamped thereon above the upper end of the upright a sleeve 23, forminga bearing for a collar 24, having cheeks 24: thereon, between which ispivoted a plate 25 on the rear end of the bent arm 25 of thebody-support, the arm being locked at any desired angle by a locking-pin25 engaging serrations on the edge of one of the checks. The arm 25 maybe telesco'pic and at its upper end is provided with a pad 25 to affordan easy rest for the chest of the rider, and it will be seen that such apad on the end of such an arm is capable of lateral motion from side toside of the bicycle with the forward portion of the body of the rider,the collar turning upon the sleeve to permit this. It is also obviousthat the arm may be so made as to be springy, thus adding to the comfortof the rider, while the transverse movement of the pad before describedmay be governed by means of springrods 26, projecting from andsecnred tothe horizontal portion of the saddle-post, the movement of the arm beingpositively limited by a pin 23.

The collar 24: has on one side thereof projecting lugs 2%, between whichthe rear end of the rod 28, running along the upper tube B of thebicycle through eyes 28, is secured, the rod having its forward endconnected to the upright of the fork on the same side of the machine asare the lugs 24 and being bent, as at 28", to give it elasticity andprevent the jars upon the fork being imparted to the saddle-post andsaddle. From this construction it is obvious that upon turning thecollar upon the saddle-post a similar rotation will be imparted to thefork, it being advisable to connect the two in such a manner that theangular movement of the latter is greatersay, for instance, twice asmuch as that of the former. It'will be also seen that this rotation maybe imparted to the collar by swinging the pad which is carried thereonfrom side to side of the machine by a leverage exerted on thebreast-rest by the front of the body, and it is to be observed that thisside motion of the body in swinging the breast-rest corresponds to thenatural motion of the bod y when the bicycle is caused to turn a curve.

I do not in this application broadly claim the hereinbefore-describedmechanism consisting of pulleys, the reciprocating belts passingthereover, and a tilting lever interposed within the belt to reciprocateit and tighten it upon the pulleys, with or without the transversestrand, &c., nor do I here broadly claim a body-support consisting of anarm pivotally or otherwise mounted at its rear end upon the bicycle, itsforward end in front of its point of attachment to the bicycle beingadapted to support the body and to swing from side to side either withor without a connection between the said arm and the steering-head, assuch matter is fully described and claimed in my said prior application,Serial No. 603,909, filed August 25, 1896 but What I do claim is a 1. Ina bicycle, the combination of a reach and a front fork, the fork beingcomposed of two uprights, one on each side of the wheel, twobridge-plates carried by the uprights, each bridge-plate beingindependently adjustable thereon, in such a manner that the axes of theuprights may be shifted in respect to the points at which they intersectthe planes of the plates, and a spindle carrying the reach and mountedbetween the bridgeplates, substantially as described.

2. In a bicycle, the combination of a reach and a front fork, the forkbeing composed of two uprights, one on each side of the front wheel,bridge-plates carried by theuprights,

each plate having opposite apertures through which the opposite forkspass, the apertures being larger than the forks contained therein, meansfor adjusting and for clamping in the adjusted position the forks withinthe apertures, whereby the axes of the former may be shifted in respectto the axis of the spindle, and a spindle carrying the reach andsupported between the bridge-plates, substantially as described.

3. In a bicycle, the combination of a reach and a front fork, the forkbeing composed of two uprights, one on each side of the front wheel,bridge-plates carried by the uprights, each plate having along'itudinally=elongated slot therein, and a spindle carrying the reachand adjustable in the slots of the bridgeplates, and means for securingthe spindle in its adjusted position, substantially as described.

4. Inabicycle,the combination withareach and a fork, the fork beingcomposed of two uprights, one on each side of the front wheel, ofbridge-plates carried by the uprights, each plate having aperturestherein through which the uprights pass, an eccentric washer containedin each aperture of each plate, an eccentric collar contained in therecess of each washer and surrounding the corresponding' centric collarcontained in the recess of each washer and surrounding the correspondingupright, the said apertures,washers and collars having serrated edgeswhereby they may be adjusted in respect to each other and secured intheir adjusted position, the reachbeing supported between thebridge-plates,- substantially as described.

6-. In a bicycle,the combination with a reach and afork, the fork beingcomposed of two uprights, one on each side of the front wheel, ofbridge-plates carried by the uprights, each plate having a slot thereinin the plane of rotationof the front wheel, a spindle having upon itsends heads contained within theslots in the opposite plates, and meansfor adjusting the heads within the corresponding slots, the said spindlesupporting the reach,j substantially as described.

7. In abicycle,the combination with a reach and a fork, the fork beingcomposed of two uprights, one on each side of the front wheel, of'

bridge-plates carried by the uprights, each plate having a slot thereinin the plane of rotation of the front wheel, a spindle having upon itsends heads contained within the slots in the opposite plates, the edgesof the slots and the heads being provided with engaging serrations,whereby the heads may be adjusted within .the slots, the said spindlesupporting the reach, substantially as described.

8. In a bicycle, the combination with a driven Wheel, of a pulleyimparting motion thereto, a guide, a belt passing over the said pulleyand guide and imparting motion to the pulley, a tilting lever interposedwithin the belt to which the oppositely-disposed ends of the belt areattached at different distances from and on the same side of the pointof application of the power, whereby the lever will in tilting cause theends of the belt to move relatively to each other, substantially as de-'scribed.

9. In a bicycle, the combination with a driven wheel, of two pulleysimparting motion thereto and located upon opposite sides thereof, aguide corresponding to each belt,

' belts passing over the corresponding pulleys and guides, a tiltinglever interposed within each belt and to which the oppositely-dis posedends of the belt are attached at differ-' ent distances from and on thesame side'of the point of application of the power, whereby the leverwill in tilting cause the ends of the belt to move relatively to eachother, and a strand'having its opposite ends connected to the two leversand assisting in tilting them, substantially as described.

10. The combination, in a bicycle, of a saddle-post, and an arm pivotedupon the saddlepost to swing transversely thereon, the forward end ofthe arm forming a support adapted to support the front of the body,substantially as described.

11. The combination in a bicycle, of a saddle-post, an adjustable sleevemounted thereon, a collar rotating upon the sleeve, and an armprojecting from the collar, the forward end of the arm forming a supportadapted to receive the front of the body, substantially as described.

12. The combination, in a bicycle, of a saddle-post, an arm pivoted uponthe saddle-post to swing transversely thereon, the forward end of thearm forming asupport forthe front of the body, and springs governing thetransverse swing of the arm, substantially as described.

13. The combination, in a bicycle, of asaddle-post, a pivoted armmounted thereon at its rear end and having asupport for the front of thebody upon its forward end capable of moving vertically and laterally,and means for locking the arm against vertical movement on its pivot,substantially as described.

v14. The combination, in a bicycle, of a saddle-post, a collar rotatablymounted thereon and having a circular rack on one side thereof, an armpivoted at its rear end on the collar and carrying a body-support on itsforwardend, and means upon the arm to lock it to the collar,substantially as described.

15. The combination in a bicycle, of a saddle-post, an arm pivoted uponthe saddle-post to swing transversely thereon, the forward end of thearm forming a support adapted to support the front of the body, and aconnection between the said arm and the steeringpost, whereby the swingof the former turns the latter, substantially as described.

16. The combination in a bicycle, of a saddle-post, an adjustable sleevemounted there on, a collar rotating upon the sleeve, and an armprojecting from the collar, the forward end of the arm forming a supportadapted to receive the front of the body and a connection between thesaid collar and the steering-post, whereby the swinging of the armcarried by the former turns the latter, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof Iaifix my signature inpresence of two witnesses.

FREDERICK POMEROY BEMIS. Witnesses:

A. G. BUSH, J. A. HOLMES.

